CALIXARENE-BASED SENSING AGENTS

The use of calixarenes in sensing devices represents an area of rapid advances over the past 10 years. Calixarenes are ideal candidates as s ensor materials, providing platforms or templates to which can be atta ched subunits capable of performing particular sensing roles. Polar gr oups with predetermined properties can be used for guest recognition, chromophores, fluorophores or electroactive groups for transduction of host-guest interaction, and groups which facilitate immobilisation on a substrate surface or within a polymer chain or membrane.